Monthly Archives: January 2013

This is an official application for friendship. In order to be considered, the application must be completed in its entirety. This is also pending a satisfactory completion of background check and competency/intelligence test

This is a sure fire test to determine if that person you want in your life as a true friend is worthy of you.

Name (Yours please) __________________________________
Number of current friends (real life) ____________________________
Number of Facebook friends ___________________________

Differential: If Facebook friends to real friends is more than a 4 to 1 ratio, bad sign!

Do you smoke? ______
How often to you drink (Days a week) _________
How many minutes a month do you average on your mobile? __________
How many texts a month do you average on your mobile? ____________

When you are at the dinner table are you eyes on:

Television with the game on ______
Your phone on the table ______
Your friends/date ______
(Don’t lie, I will know)

When a friend calls you do you:

Call back when you can _______
Text them and say “whats up?” _______
Ignore it and call back when you are bored _______

“I think music in itself is healing. It’s an explosive expression of humanity. It’s something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we’re from, everyone loves music.” – Billy Joel

“Music doesn’t lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.” – Jimi Hendrix

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.” – Plato

With the release of his second album, Shot in the Dark, Carey Murdock has defined himself as a singer/songwriter with a voice and a message. This Augusta, Georgia native, now a proud member of the Nashville family first gave the music scene a taste of his deep soulful voice with Baby Don’t Look Down

With his vocals that resonate throughout the bar and youthful looks, he is reminiscent of Jonny Lang whose Minnesota blues sound set him apart at a very young age. The new album provides harmonies and chords that remind us of the early years of Bruce Springsteen.

During his set in Charleston, South Carolina on January 24, 2013 launching the North American CD release tour, he burst immediately into a high powered set of rock anthems, brought it down a notch and ended the set with some true southern blues.

After spending time in Europe touring and countless hours in the studio putting together this new album, Carey looked ready to bring his energy and songs to his fans back in America.

Typically, you will catch him on stage with a button down shirt, vest and jeans or a sports jacket. His style is part of what sets his image, but his voice and lyrics are what keeps you coming back.

Personally, I feel his anthem Augusta is a defining song. It is a dedication to the town that bore him, raised him and inspired. As he described it, many of his friends do not speak fondly of Augusta but he “begs to differ.” As you listen closely to his personal and emotional ode to his hometown, you cannot help but feel yourself on the streets of this Georgia town.

As he sang this dedication, I began to think of the musical icons of my childhood and their tributes to hometown America including:

Smalltown – John Cougar Mellencamp
My Hometown – Bruce Springsteen
Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town – Pearl Jam
New York State of Mind – Billy Joel

At the end of the day, no matter where you travel and how many miles you track, home is always right there safe in your heart. Carey took the time to remind us of that.

In a day and age where singer/songwriters get lost in the shadows, struggling to make a name and an audience, a rare few inspire us with lyrics from the soul and a sound send from high above. Carey Murdock is a visionary musician blessed with incredible musical talent, a voice with deep definition and poetry running from his veins.

If you have not had an opportunity to catch one of his sets, it is a treat. He will have you cheering and smiling all the way through.

Sometimes the comfort of life is found in the simplicity of routine and awareness. Last evening a comedian asked a recently married woman why she chose to get married and she replied, “It’s fun”. I almost wish it were that simple, but as we all know it is not.

Why do we get married, raise a family, lives in the solitude of a house with a white picket fence, a dog and two cats.

It is safe and comforting. There is limited risk when you have the same routine, come home to the same people and know what to expect before the day begins.

Avoidance of loneliness. We never want to live alone and more importantly die alone. It is one of the darkest thoughts any of us can conceive.

Life is hard enough. If you can limit excess challenge and stress, it makes the rest a little more bearable. Finding someone to comfort you at night is one of the most emotionally straining journey’s of one’s life. Finding someone to share your life with is a gift, even if it is not perfectly wrapped, it is better than constantly shopping.

It is a perception of accomplishment and normalcy. Each stage of your life brings a societal accepted level of accomplishment. As you reach a certain age, based on culture, geography, professional level, etc, one is expected to be married and bearing children. Those that have not reached that level are all too often thought of as failures, gay, weird, crazy or any other number of personality or mental flaws.

The need for intimacy. As you get older, your physical attributes become less attractive and the availability of physical intimacy becomes more difficult. Marriage does not guarantee daily affirmation, but it does assure you it will happen at some point.

We no longer have to dream. I see this as a negative. When we are young we are full of wonder. We want to see the world, volunteer to help the less fortunate, invent the next great thing, write the perfect novel, go to the Olympics or change the world. Marriage can bury all those hopes and dreams with two simple words, “I do.”

Here is why marriage can be incredible and stunning beyond your wildest imagination:

She/he believes in you and you believe in her/him each and every day

Your shared passions comes together in a perfect tapestry

You laugh, cry and smile together

They are the only person in focus and the vision of the them is brighter than anything else around you

You want to feel the pain when they are not around

You know you are not perfect and you are not ashamed to make mistakes

Each kiss feels like the first. Each morning is a new beginning

The glow. A simple day is like winning the Olympic gold as long as you can share it together.

Fall in love

Fall hard

Take the giant leap, but only when you know; when you really know deep in the depths of your your heart that this is your destiny. When they complete you like no has or ever will again, you will know.

I will begin with the disclaimer that this is a true story. All information shared in this tale is true and not one thing is made up. All information has been documented and archived.

This story was shared with me last evening when I mentioned I had purchased a horse named Skippity Dippity as a going away present for a friend moving away in a few short weeks.

Here is her story:

When she was a child, her and the other grand children loved to sit and listen to Grandpa. He told the most amazing stories. Glued to his every word, the children would listen intently and absorb the wonder of it all. One day Grandpa told the story of Bloomers the horse. Of course the curious minds of the children took over.

What color was Bloomers, one grandchild asked.

Blue, of course, replied Grandpa. From that day on, the grandchildren shared in eager excitement to hear the tales of Bloomers the Blue Horse.

Bloomers was a horse of courage, strength and leadership. As the stories were shared from the elder wise man to the young impressionable children, Bloomers was part of the Allied efforts in World War I, World War II, Korea and finally came to his demise in Iraq. Along the way, he was a fire horse pushing the old fire trucks and my personal favorite, a lead horse on the pony express.

I know you are doing your historic math right now and thinking how can one horse live during the 1800’s and the pony express and not die until the late 20th century? The answer is easy, because Grandpa said so. Don’t forget Bloomers was a blue horse so there must have been something magical about him that allowed him to give selflessly during these challenging times in our history.

Grandpa finally passed away one day and with that his stories were silenced but never forgotten. On the day of his viewing, between the early and late scheduled times, the grandchildren bonded together and went to Walmart in search of a sign. They looked for something to assure them that Grandpa was in a safe place. In the toy section (because where else would children go), alone in a little caged shelf was a blue stuffed horse. They were in awe. It was Bloomers. This wasn’t a designer or name brand blue horse. This was Bloomers. This was the message sent from the angels.

The children knew what they had to do. They had to bring Bloomers back to the funeral home and give him to Grandpa. They rushed up to the cashier and pooled their money together to buy Bloomers so he could be side by side with Grandpa for all eternity. When they got back to the funeral home, they circled the casket with excitement. I am sure to most observers this looked a little strange.

Where to put Bloomers?,they thought

They didn’t think his chest worked or by his head so they decided to rest Bloomers right in his hand. A few minutes later, Grandma noticed and yanked Bloomers out of the casket. She raised her voice and explained that Bloomers would not be buried with Grandpa, It was disrespectful she said.

Saddened once again, the grandchildren went outside and sat alone feeling they failed Grandpa.

They didn’t.

Today, Bloomers is with Grandma and it is shared and played with by all the nieces, nephews, grandchildren and great grandchildren that come over to see Grandma.

Grandpa did end up with Bloomers and every time a child plays with Bloomers, a part of Grandpa is playing right along side with them.

Remember, never stop listening to the stories of our grandparents. They never lie and they tell the most amazing and memorable tales.

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